I am honored to introduce a dear, sweet, and gorgeous friend I met on facebook, Caterina Ciman. Today just happens to be her birthday! Happy Birthday my lovely friend! <3 and hugs!
While we have never met, or talked, in person, we have chatted and e-mailed and become very good friends. She is such an inspiration and I know you will feel the same. You can join Caterina on facebook
here. Losing weight and maintaining it wisely....is her passion. Caterina has her own business in weight loss and maintenance and is gracious enough to share some of her amazingly delicious, traditional Italian recipes. She also shares some health conscious recipes with us. All of which I am so happy to have on hand. ~smile~ (I'll share a recipe later today) Please say hello, Happy Birthday, and welcome her to Recipes For My Boys! Thank you once again, Caterina! <3 and hugs!
Written by Caterina:
I was born in Cape Town, South Africa, on 7th May, 1956 to Italian immigrants Ines Coltri, who came from a wealthy family living in Verona, and my papa', Giulio Lorenzi whose family were stone masons. I have an older brother, Giovanni, who is four years older, and has been a giant pillar of support, in so many ways, to my parents as they grew old, to me and my family, and to the general Italian community in South Africa.
As a child I was always passionate about cooking and baking. When mama used to go for her nap on Saturday afternoons, I used to sneak into the kitchen and bake scones or biscuits. I would prepare a tea tray for her, take it to her room, and then rush back to the kitchen to clean up. Heaven forbid if she came there and anything was out of place.
Whenever mama used to make pasta, gnocchi, ravioli etc., all by hand, and I was always hanging onto her apron strings to see if I could learn anything. Sundays used to be papa's turn. His specialty "Brodo" or briefly... Chicken soup, roll-mops, and "Salsa Verde." He took such pride in the food preparation, (that is an Italian trait) and was also very conscious about cleaning up after himself.
I am married for 37 years to Santino, We have been together since 1969 and we have two beautiful daughters, Natasha who is 36 years old, and Martina who is 34 years old this year. Between them they have given us 5 grandchildren, who are the absolute light in our lives.
My passion for cooking and baking is still as strong as ever. I have been working in the weight management business for 24 years now, and for the last 10 years, I started my own little private business in the same field. What makes my business unique is the fact that I teach people how to prepare healthy meals as well as offering motivational support during their journey. That means I constantly need to come up with new recipes and ideas to make food interesting and appealing as well as healthy for the person who wants to seriously take care of themselves, whether is is weight loss or maintenance.
I want to thank you Debi for this wonderful privilege and opportunity you are giving me to tell my story and to share some of the knowledge that I have gathered over the last 24 years. I will be sharing some traditional Italian recipes as well as some of the more healthy recipes for the weight conscious person.
Eating healthily is very simple. It means that you eat food that is as natural and as fresh as you can possibly afford, without cooking it to death. If your great grandmother went into the supermarket today to do her shopping, I bet she would not be able to recognize three quarters of the food on the shelves. If you start off with fresh and natural ingredients, the end result can only be wonderful and healthy for you.
I also grow most of my own herbs, which add a special touch to the dishes that I prepare. Many people who try my recipes often say, "But mine wasn't as good as yours." Well the only explanation for that, is that I used fresh herbs, and add lots and lots of love. Anybody who has attended a demonstration, knows that I always say, "You need to make love to your food when you prepare it...then it will love you back."
Portion control plays a huge roll when it comes to weight loss or maintenance, and I recommend 5-8 portions of vegetables, 3 of which can be fruit. Taking note that variety and color is essential. Eating green, orange, yellow and red fruit and vegetables is the pathway to great health. Also including healthy fats like olive oil, a limited amount of protein and carbohydrates rounds of the eating plan very well. The mistake most people make is to go on a "diet", which implies that when you reach your target, you will go off it, and that is when the problem starts. You need to take a good and honest look at your lifestyle. A question you need to ask yourself is, "What habits got me to this weight, or unhealthy state, and what do I need to change?" If you go on a "diet", lost the weight and go back to your bad habits, you will surely gain the weight back again. Those bad habits need to be changed, and notice I said "changed", which means you replace the bad, unhealthy habit, with a good, healthy and wiser habit or food choice.
Eating variety is very important because it provides you with a variety of nutrients, and it keeps your menu interesting too. Another point I would like to emphasize, is that we must eat seasonally. The "rest" your body has from one season to the next is essential.
Food preparation is just as important. You cannot expect to fry everything and still be healthy. That has to change. Try grilling, baking or even barbeque. Keep it interesting...always.
